Saturday, 14 January 2006

The Willow Coppice Project

Have decided to create a willow coppice for basket making materials. This is relatively cheap to set up and quick to install as willow is very easy to root. My biggest worry is protecting the young plants from rabbits and deer until they are properly established.

Total cost in the region of £35 but does not include protection from vermin.

or some mixture like that anyway. It provides 7 named species of willow and we already have Salix alba yellow barked form on the farm and maybe others that I've not identified yet. The total area required for the coppice will be about 5 sq m. max (plants are usually spaced at 30cm x 60cm which is close to keep the stems straight) and some of the more ornamental types can be used in the hedges and landscaping. Additional plantings will be free at the cost of a year's wait for propagation material.